A Retiring Thurmond Bids Farewell to Senate
In what probably was his final speech in the Senate, where he has served for nearly 50 years, South Carolina’s Strom Thurmond bade farewell to politics.
The Republican, who turns 100 on Dec. 5, gained national attention as a segregationist in the 1940s and 1950s, but is now known more for his longevity than his ideology.
Having the dual distinction of being the oldest person ever to serve in the Senate as well as the longest-serving senator, Thurmond will retire when Congress adjourns for the year, sometime in the next few weeks.
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